Choices
by deksi
Summary: After a horrible discovery by Deeks, the team finds they have to help him over the shock of the case. There will be a few Densi chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**The creative juices are flowing in my little head at the moment. Here is brand new story for you! Hope you enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: All NCISLA characters don't belong to me. **

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 1**

It was a cool, crisp morning as Marty Deeks paddled through the blue choppy seas at his favourite little bit of the California coast. It was a quiet little beach, where not many surfers came thinking the waves didn't roll too well here sometimes, but Deeks loved it. Out on the open water, Deeks sought solace and peace from torturous nightmares and re-living of cases in his mind, it could all be washed away with the changing tides. He knew he couldn't wash the memories and pain away just by coming out here surfing, but it just made it easier to suppress and forget, at least until night fell when the visions would come flooding back.

Deeks looked at his water proof watch and decided he better start heading to shore. He saw a wave start to form and quickly paddled to keep up with it, before he effortlessly in one swift motion stood astride the board and rolled with the wave to the beach.

As he jogged to where he left his towel, he glanced further up the beach to see something near the water's edge, the small waves splashing over it. Curious, he gathered his belongings and decided to go check it out. _'Perhaps it's a beached dolphin or small whale'_ he thought as he trudged through the wet sand to reach it.

Deeks gasped as he neared it. The sight of the teenage girl laying there face down, dead was shocking. Her hair was blonde, straggled wet across her face. Deeks gently turned her onto her back, brushing the wet hair from her eyes. _'God, she must be 14 or 15'_ he thought, shaking his head. The girl had been abused by the look of her injuries. There was bruising on her wrists, her lips swollen and cut and angry looking bruises on her arms and stomach.

Tell-tale signs of a sexual assault that Deeks had seen too many times in his role as a police detective were staring back at him. Each time he had come across a case of such abuse, it shook him to the core. Painful memories of an abused childhood reached the surface of his mind, threatening to explode.

Deeks pulled out his cell phone and first dialled LAPD, alerting them of his discovery. A quick glance at his watch told him to next call Hetty to tell her he'd be late. He heard the phone dial and was prepared for the tongue lashing he was expecting from Hetty about his tardiness…

**OPS CENTRE**

Callen approached Hetty's desk apprehensively with reports in his hands. He waited until she looked up, and then handed over the files.

"Well Mr Callen, I'm glad you finally took my advice to finish those reports that are well overdue I might add". Hetty said.

"It was the thought of what you threatened me with if I didn't get onto them that finally pushed me Hetty" Callen replied.

"Ah so my threat of pinning you up on the wall in the gun firing room so I could use you as target practice did the trick"

"Death by Hetty is _not_ how I imagined going out" Callen smiled.

"A good decision Mr Callen", Hetty nodded as her cell phone buzzed on her desk and she picked it up to answer it, "Mr Deeks, I was wondering if you forgot it was Monday…"

"_I'm sorry Hetty, but something's happened" _

"Are you okay Mr Deeks?" Hetty asked.

"_Yeah I'm okay. I was surfing this morning and when I came into shore, I noticed something further up the beach, so I took a look to see what it was. Hetty it was a young girl, about 14 or 15 years old, washed up dead on the beach. She has some pretty horrible bruising and it looks like she was sexually abused too. I've called LAPD; they're here now, taking my statement. I'll be in as soon as I can Hetty"._

"I see. Well keep me updated Mr Deeks and I'll see you when you can" Hetty said, disconnecting the call.

"Hetty?" Callen asked, his interest piqued.

"Mr Deeks is fine, Mr Callen. He was surfing this morning when he found the body of a young teenage girl washed up dead on the shore. It looks like she was physically abused. Mr Deeks is relaying his discovery to LAPD as we speak" said Hetty.

"Who's the girl?" Callen wondered aloud.

"We don't know. She could be a runaway who got into trouble possibly. We'll know more after LAPD conducts a search on her"

"If you hear anything, will you let me know Hetty?" asked Callen.

"Yes Mr Callen, I will. In the meantime I see quite a few more files in your inbox"

"I get the hint" Callen grinned as he walked back to his desk.

"You okay G? You got that look you always get when we're trying to figure out who's the bad guy to catch" Sam chuckled.

"I don't make a face…do I?" Callen frowned.

Kensi smiled, "Oh yeah, we're quite used to seeing it aren't we Sam?"

"That's why I can beat him at poker. His face gives him away every time" Sam smiled.

"You beat me at poker because you cheat Sam. Hetty just got a call from Deeks. He was surfing this morning when he found a dead girl's body washed ashore not far from where he was surfing"

"Oh that's horrible" gasped Kensi, "Is Deeks okay, Callen?"

"Yeah Hetty said he sounded a bit shaky, but he's okay. Apparently it looks like the girl was abused. I guess any abuse cases have got to be hard on Deeks. I know we don't know everything about Deeks' childhood but from the little bits he has told us, I'm guessing this wasn't pretty"

"I suppose it's an LAPD investigation so it's out of our hands?" Kensi asked.

"Yep, but there may be a way we can find out details about the girl"

"G?" Sam looked at his partner confused.

"Rose, at the morgue".

**Okay so let me know what you think and if I should go on with it. Reviews would be great too! Much love xxx**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: None of NCISLA is mine.**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 2**

Callen dialled the number for Rose and smiled as the bubbly scientist started babbling away so quickly that Callen had trouble trying to get a word in.

"Rose! Can you listen for a minute? Deeks found a dead young girl washed ashore this morning. Huh? Oh yeah Deeks is fine. Listen, the body should be there at the morgue soon. If you find anything strange or unusual can you let me know? It's an LAPD investigation but since Deeks is one of our…right, thanks Rose" Callen sighed and replaced his phone on the desk.

"How's your ear?" Sam chuckled.

"I could feel it getting hotter by the second. I'd forgotten how talkative she is" Callen said rubbing his ear, "I haven't spoken to her for a while".

"Your ear is looking like a nice shade of tomato red" Kensi grinned, "Will she call us?"

Callen nodded, "As soon as she's examined the body, she'll call"

Deeks came in round the corner of the bullpen and with a heavy sigh, walked to his desk and flopped into the chair.

"Hey Deeks, you okay?" Sam asked, concerned.

Deeks turned and gave him a small smile, "Yeah I'm fine. It was just rough seeing such a young girl end up like that"

"When its kids involved it's always rough", Callen nodded, "Did you notice anything unusual about the body?"

"Other than the fact she had bruises and looked like she was physically abused, no" Deeks shook his head.

"Is this bringing up memories of you as a kid, Deeks? I mean if this is too much…" Sam said.

"It's hard, but I can handle it" Deeks said sharply.

Deeks had never really told the team just how bad the physical abuse was at home, when he was young. The team knew he shot his father when he was eleven, but the torment thrust upon him by his father was ingrained deep in his memories. The façade his colleagues saw every day hid the pain buried deep within.

He was lost in thought, when he heard a voice shouting his name and he looked up to see Kensi frowning at him, very concerned.

"Are you sure you're okay Deeks?" she asked.

"I'm sure, why?" Deeks he looked at her.

"Your email just beeped. You didn't hear it?"

"Oh", he shook his head then moved his fingers on the keypad and opened the email and proceeded to read it.

"Deeks?" Callen asked.

"It's from LAPD, they've identified the girl. Her name is Holly Gardiner, fifteen years old, from San Diego. Got a picture here"

The team all gathered around Deeks' desk as they studied the email and photo of the blonde young girl.

"Gosh, she was a pretty little thing" Kensi said sadly.

"Eric!" Callen called up to the balcony, to which the tech guru appeared shortly after.

"Yo! What's up?" he asked, computer tablet in hand.

"Deeks is going to send you info on the girl he found. Do a background check. Family, friends etc."

"Got it" Eric nodded as his fingers automatically began flying across the tablet. If there was a competition for fasted fingers on a computer, Eric would be close to the top position.

After two hours of waiting, Rose finally called back to Callen with an interesting find, "Callen I found something odd, well something I didn't expect to find inside a fifteen year old girl…"

"What did you find Rose?" Callen asked impatiently.

"A chip. I have no idea what is on it though. Do I hand it over to LAPD or you guys?"

"Found something!" Nell and Eric called out, bounding down the stairs, as Callen pushed the button to put Rose through on speaker, "Holly's father is Lieutenant Commander Chad Gardiner. He's an operations linguistic analyst with top security clearance, currently listed as serving on the USS Dakota, in the Mid-East" Nell said.

"He and his wife divorced five years ago, the wife, Sally got custody of Holly until Sally died in a plane crash two years ago", Eric added, "The kicker is, the Lieutenant Commander is missing at the moment"

"Missing?" Sam asked, "When did he go missing?"

"Three days ago. School records indicate that Holly hadn't turned up to school for four days" Nell answered.

"That concurs with the time of death for Holly" Rose said over the phone.

"Okay so what sort of analyst is the Commander, Eric?" Kensi asked.

"His records are classified. I can't get in to check" he shrugged.

"Let me make a few phone calls on that Eric", Hetty stated, coming to the bullpen, "As soon as I heard you say he was Navy, I made a call to LAPD. They are more than happy to hand the case over to us"

"Rose, it's our case now, can you hang onto that chip, put it in a safe place? Sam and I will come and get it" Callen said.

"Okay Callen. I'll see you when you get here" she replied and hung up.

"Mr Callen, Mr Hanna as soon as you have the chip, bring it back here to Ops. Miss Blye and Mr Deeks can wait until I sort out Lieutenant Commander's files" Hetty ordered.

Callen and Sam nodded in response and headed out to the Challenger. The drive out to the morgue was relatively quiet, Callen looking lost in thought…

"G, you okay? You look like you're away with the pixies like Deeks was before"

"Yeah, actually I was thinking about Deeks. This case seems to have shaken him up a bit. That's not like him"

"I guess all we can do is keep an eye on him. If or when he's ready to talk about something then we can help" Sam shrugged.

"That's the thing I don't think he's told anyone about what happened when he was a kid"

"Why does that sound vaguely familiar to someone else I know?" Sam turned and smiled.

They parked the car under the large shady tree outside the building housing the morgue. Striding in, through the hallways, it seemed uneasy within the cold, white walls.

"I hate coming here. I mean I like seeing Rose but…"Callen shuddered.

"This place gives you the creeps", Sam nodded, "I know, I get the same creepy feeling"

They turned left at the next hallway to Rose's work room on the right. Callen stuck his head around the corner of the doorway and called out…

"Rose, its Callen and Sam"

Rose gasped and gave a little jump in surprise as she heard Callen's familiar voice, "Callen I wish you wouldn't scare me like that! I'm glad to see you"

"Sorry Rose. You work with dead bodies all day…that would scare me", he smiled "Do you have the chip?"

"Oh sure, follow me. I made sure I put it in a super-secret place".

Rose led them out to the refrigeration room where the bodies are autopsied before heading out to be laid to rest. She went to the third row and pulled out the wheeled slab that had the body of a man in his fifties on it. The male had obviously been shot dead from the two large bullet wounds in his chest.

"Poor guy" Sam pointed to the scars.

"Actually Sam you need not feel sorry for this guy. He was a convicted paedophile who discovered where he was located by the parent of a young girl who was abused by this man. Needless to say the parent shot him dead" said Rose.

"Just desserts I say" Callen smiled.

Rose smiled as he slid the male body up a little and moved to his feet. She pulled the little ring pull to reveal a hidden hatch embedded in the concrete. She pulled out the chip and handed it to Callen before closing the hatch and pushing the body back to position inside the wall.

"Nice hiding spot" Sam grinned, "I know I wouldn't like to look under a dead body for something"

"Thanks, no one knows about it though" Rose smiled, "Come, I'll show you the dead girl"

Callen looked up and down the body, "Cause of death Rose?"

"Poison. Whoever killed her did so by giving her a sweet drink that was laced with methanol. It would have been painful, totally damaged all her vital organs. She was then knocked unconscious and didn't wake up in the water and so drowned"

"Where did you find the chip on her?" Sam asked.

Rose lifted Holly onto her side and lifted her hair, "Do you see this cut at the back of her neck? This is where the chip was located inside"

"Holly's long hair hid the chip. These bruises and such, are they new or old?" Callen asked.

"These ones are fresh, but I have seen bruising on her that appears someone has been abusive to her for a while" nodded Rose.

"So someone's been abusing her for years. Her father?" Sam looked at his partner.

"That would be the first suspect. Let's get back to Ops and give the chip to Eric. Thanks Rose you've been a big help" Callen smiled.

"Oh anytime Callen. We must catch up soon though. It's been way too long…"

"Yeah, we should…um I'll let you know when we can make it" said Callen as he backed away to the hallway.

"Nice save G" chuckled Sam.

TBC…

**Thanks to everyone for the Story Alerts and Reviews. Talk about great motivation! Keep them coming! Much love to all xxx**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey all. Next chapter for you. Hope you enjoy xxx**

**Disclaimer: All NCISLA belongs to someone else…certainly not me!**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 3**

Deeks kept staring at the photo of Holly Gardiner on his laptop screen. The haunting image of her smiling seemed to him as if she was alive and staring straight at him. Kensi was poring through the declassified files that Hetty had handed to her of Holly's father. He glanced at her reading through the pages, and quietly stood up and headed to the gun firing room.

He felt like he had to do something, shooting a paper target was as good as something as he could think of at the moment. It wasn't really going to help…it wasn't going to bring Holly _back, but his mind was racing. Blurring images alternating between Holly lying on the beach_ to his father swearing and coming straight at him with his fists. Why this case was affecting him so much he didn't know. He just couldn't fathom why this one case was making him feel so down. He had experienced many similar cases of abuse over the years of him being a police detective. Hell, he had experienced it himself. Some cases had been much worse that Holly's and yet he had managed to handle those atrocities with relative ease. _'So why this case?'_ he thought as he brought his gun up to fire, _'why?'_

When Sam and Callen returned, Callen went straight up to Eric to hand him the chip while Sam strode to his chair. Kensi was deep in concentration at her desk, skimming her fingers over the words as she was reading, but he saw that Deeks wasn't there...

"Hey Kensi, where's Deeks?" he asked.

"I'm not sure. He just quietly stood up without a word and walked out, heading to the gym or firing range" she said, "Something is bothering him"

"Hey so Eric's going to check the chip and let us know when he finds anything…where's Deeks?" Callen asked as he scanned the bullpen.

"Kensi said he just stood up and walked to the gym. This case is affecting him G" said Sam.

"I can talk to him" Callen shrugged, "he might tell me what's in his head"

Kensi looked up from her desk, "No I'll talk to him guys. He _is _my partner. I'll invite him over when we go home"

Callen nodded, "Did you find anything in the file, Kens?"

"Nothing is jumping out at me yet" she shook her head, "Hopefully Eric gets something off the chip. How's Rose by the way?"

"Uh, she's good. She sends her best to everyone" Callen smiled.

"Rose also asked Callen to catch up with her over dinner" Sam grinned.

"I thought she was Nate's girlfriend? Don't tell me Callen's been sending off signals to her" Kensi laughed.

"No I just think Rose has a little crush on our illustrious agent Callen" Sam chuckled, "Lucky him huh?"

"Don't even joke about it Sam. I mean I like Rose and all but…" Callen waggled a finger at him.

"You did say you attract the intellectual types didn't you G? Rose is perfect for you"

Callen glared at his partner who was grinning like a Cheshire cat. "I'll tell Nate you said that Sam"

Deeks came back and stopped at his partner's desk with a sigh, 'Hey I'm sorry I disappeared before Kensi. I'm fine now. Did you find anything?"

"Right…" Kensi stared at her partner not believing a word he just said, "No nothing yet. We're waiting on Eric and the chip"

"Okay" he nodded, "Care to take a guess at what's on the chip guys?"

"Could be anything. Gardiner had top security. He could have access to hundreds of secrets" said Callen.

"Did Rose find anything apart from the chip?" Kensi asked.

"Just that the bruises on her now are new, but she has old injuries as well" Sam replied.

"Her father? Or someone else?"

"Chad Gardiner would be the first suspect but he may not be the only suspect" Callen nodded.

Eric whistled over the top balcony, his piercing call to arms echoing loudly through the building.

"I swear, one of these days I'm gonna strangle Eric so he can't whistle ever again" Sam grumbled.

"Hetty wouldn't let you Sam" Callen smiled, "Besides she's the one who taught him the tactic"

Kensi was taking the steps up side by side with her partner when she stopped and grabbed his arm, "Hey Deeks, how about you coming over tonight to my place? I'll make you my best ever dessert I recently discovered"

"You discovered a dessert recipe? Really Kensi?" Deeks looked doubtfully at her.

"Okay I discovered it by accident…but it's really good. Oh come on, partner…I really want you to come over"

Deeks sighed, "You really want me to come over? This isn't because I disappeared before is it? If it is…I told you I'm fine, really"

"I'm worried about you Deeks. We all are. This isn't like you. You don't mope about things. You sulk when things don't go your way or we pick on you…but this…this is different"

"Okay fine", he huffed, "I'll come over about 9"

"Great" Kensi smiled, "I'll make sure I tape Top Model for you so you don't miss it"

They caught up with the others who were waiting in the tech room for them to arrive. Eric and Nell, tablets in hand, were eager to get started.

"Fire away Eric" Callen nodded.

"One little chip found on Holly Gardiner this morning", he began, "On it are the details of a new thing the navy is working on"

"The thing is a synthetic drug that when taken, causes the person to make him feel suicidal" Nell added, "The idea is that hostiles in custody or enemies of ours are given this drug to cause them to do a sort of cleansing by their own hands. It means that instead of the government being accused of human rights abuse, they can just say the prisoner killed himself. All traces of the drug would be flushed from the body before any autopsy asked for could be granted. Gardiner knew the scientists were working on it but somehow it may have been compromised".

"How so Nell?" Sam asked.

"After Hetty spoke to a friend of Gardiner's, she discovered that Gardiner thought someone he knows found out about the drug and wants to use it for terrorist means"

"What some crazy wants to hand out this drug to the kids on the street instead of who it's meant for, our enemies?" Deeks asked.

"That's the theory" Eric nodded, "Terrorists could distribute it out as if it was an ordinary party drug. Thousands of people who take the drugs…"

"Could end up killing themselves because of it. So how did Holly end up with the chip?" asked Kensi.

"We're guessing her father put it in Holly. Records show that Holly went in for surgery to a dislocated shoulder that was troubling her. Rose spoke to her doctor and he admitted that Gardiner asked him to implant the chip for $20,000 dollars a month ago". Nell nodded.

"And Holly's abuse? Is her father the one who did that?" Deeks asked.

"Yes. Gardiner's friend admitted he has a temper and that Holly was a rebellious child especially after her mother died. He found it difficult to deal with hers since then. One time Holly hit Gardiner in anger during an argument and Gardiner couldn't restrain himself and hit her back. That's when the abuse started."

"They always hit back" Deeks shook his head, knowing how his own father was like that.

"We should speak to that friend of Gardiner's. Eric?" noted Callen.

"The friend's name is Derek Pilkerton, address is on your phones"

"While Mr Callen and Mr Hanna are interviewing Mr Pilkerton, Mr Deeks and Miss Blye can check Holly's school records, talk to her friends find out a little more about her.

"On our way. Nell what was Holly's school?" Kensi asked.

"Grace town High School. I'll send you the address" Nell nodded.

**Phew! I had got a little brain freeze for this chapter. Hopefully it's okay. Review if you wish. Much love xxx**


	4. Chapter 4

**Next chapter for ya! Hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: nope it's still not mine…**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 4**

"So what's this new dessert Kens?" Deeks asked, "Is it junk food or real food?"

"You will have to wait and see Deeks", she smiled, "You feeling better?"

"Yeah, I dunno Kens, this case is messing with my head which is stupid because I've dealt with heaps of abuse cases before and it's never been a problem"

"So why is this case any different?"

Deeks shook his head, "I just don't know"

"You could have talked to Nate but he's not here", Kensi glanced at her partner, "Or you can speak to me. I'll listen"

Deeks nodded, "You're my partner I can tell you anything right?"

"Exactly. Whatever it is we'll work it out. We always do." Kensi grinned, "We're here at the school".

They walked into the main administration building and Kensi introduced them both to the receptionist. It was a small school with only 300 students, making it one of the smallest in California.

"Special Agent Blye, I'm Darryl Waincroft, the principal. Pleased to meet you" the tall man in his sixties smiled, shaking her hand.

"Likewise. We are here about Holly Gardiner. We understand she was a student here" said Kensi.

"Yes that's right. I pulled up her records, Holly was a good student. Straight A's in most of her classes. She had a few friends, she wasn't with the most popular girls but she wasn't the girl in the corner either" Waincroft said, handing over the file.

"Any trouble that you can think of?" Deeks asked as he opened the folder.

"None. As I said Holly was a good student. I've asked her friends to come to the office while you're here. Just give me a moment I'll get Samira to call them" Waincroft nodded to his receptionist.

Five minutes later, two girls came to the office. Jacinta Vargas and Briony Campbell walked in looking a little intimidated by their surroundings.

"Ah girls…this is Special Agent Kensi Blye NCIS and her partner Detective Marty Deeks LAPD. They just want to ask you a few questions about Holly Gardiner" Wainwright smiled.

"Yes sir" Briony nodded as she glanced at her friend.

"You can call me Kensi. Don't be scared girls. We just want to know what Holly was like, what she was interested in. If she talked about her family…that sort of thing"

"Well, Holly was upset when her mom died, that's a given. She never really talked about her dad. I don't think she really got on with him that well" Jacinta said.

"Did you see her with bruises?" asked Deeks.

"I asked her a few times about them when I saw them, but she always tried covering them up and then she started playing sport. Holly never really liked sport but she admitted that she thought that by playing it would be a good way to excuse the bruises that were becoming more frequent" Briony nodded.

"I had never met her dad. She used to say he was away with the navy a lot so she didn't see him much either, until her mom died then it was different because he got custody" said Jacinta.

"What about drugs? Did Holly take any?" asked Kensi.

The girls looked at the principal with trepidation, if they told what they knew…

"It's okay girls, anything said within this room stays here. I'd be disappointed if you girls _were_ taking anything, but you wouldn't be in trouble" Waincroft said.

Briony shrugged, "We took a few pills every now and then but nothing recently"

Kensi looked at her partner, "Okay then thank you girls, that's all we need at the moment. And thank you Mr Waincroft for your cooperation".

"You're welcome Agent Blye" Waincroft stood and offered his hand, "If there is anything else I can help you with let me know"

Deeks and Kensi ambled back to the car and got in, "Maybe Sam and Callen can have more luck" Kensi shrugged.

**SAM AND CALLEN**

"Derek Pilkerton, I'm Special Agent Callen, this is Special Agent Sam Hanna from NCIS. We'd like to ask you a few questions about Chad Gardiner"

"Yes a Henrietta Lange called me and said you probably will want to speak with me" Pilkerton smiled.

"His daughter Holly was found dead earlier with an autopsy revealing a chip that was implanted in her. This chip had details of a new drug the navy was working on. You believe Gardiner was suspicious of something?" Callen asked.

'Yes Chad was had inner knowledge of the new drug the navy was testing. He told me there was a guy he suspected was a sleeper of some sort within the navy" Derek said.

"A traitor?" Sam questioned.

Derek nodded, "That was Chad's concern. The guy kept putting himself in places where conversations were overheard, computer screens could be seen, and he did as many shifts as he could in Chad's department if we got short staffed, that sort of thing"

"Did Gardiner ever report it?" asked Callen.

"No. Chad decided the chip was important enough that getting it out of this guy's sight was the best thing to do. Chad said Holly was going into surgery for a shoulder she hurt playing sport. He told me he paid the doctor to implant the chip into Holly"

"That was about a month ago that she had the surgery" Sam noted to Callen.

"Yes. I started keeping watch on the guy after Chad told me what was happening and when the guy found out that the program was being halted for a little bit he started to get tense. Four days ago Chad went missing. I figured it had to be something to do with the chip so I reported what I knew immediately"

"Who is the sleeper guy, do you know?" Callen asked.

"Chad told me his name was Bernardo Amora. But I don't think that is his real name but just the name that the navy knows him by"

Callen pulled out his cell phone, "Eric, we need all info on a Bernardo Amora. It may be a false name. He could be a sleeper within the navy…let me know what you find".

"I'm on it G" Eric told him.

"Looking at navy records now, sending you guys a photo and his file" Nell chimed in.

Sam opened the file and photo on his cell screen, "This him?" he showed Derek.

Derek looked at the screen and nodded, "Yes that's him"

"False name Eric?" Callen asked.

"Seems like it, according to birth records, there is a no Bernardo Amora anywhere to be found, this guy has made Bernardo Amora up himself" Nell relayed.

"There has to be something, G" Sam huffed, "The navy does a thorough background check on recruits"

"If he was a sleeper, then he was born here Sam. An American citizen"

"Got it. Amora's real name is Ricardo Namirea and he _is_ American, born in Anaheim the son of Haliena and Dario Namirea. His father was a Columbian police officer it seems, immigrated to the US in '68 a year later Ricardo Namirea was born. Instead of joining the police like his father, Ricardo joined the navy" Nell answered.

"They could be tied up with the drug trade" Sam mused, "Get hold of the new drugs pass them out on the streets".

"Check out any drug trade connections Nell, we're going to head back" Callen clicked off.

**OPS CENTRE**

Kensi and Deeks sat at their desks writing out the information they got at the school as Sam and Callen walked to the bullpen.

"Hey Kensi, how'd you go at the school?" Callen asked, sagging into his chair.

"Nothing unusual really. Holly took a few party drugs every now and then but didn't use regularly. Straight A student in most classes. Had a few friends, Jacinta and Briony but wasn't in with the popular girls as such"

"Ah the popular girls, so much fun" Deeks sighed wistfully.

"And he's back" Sam rolled his eyes.

"Were you one of the popular girls Kensi?" Deeks asked cheekily.

"I was the…outdoor sporty girl"

"Kick ass Blye even back then huh?" Deeks grinned.

"Got detention for a month for beating up a kid who was bullying some kid way smaller than him" she proudly stated.

"So you haven't changed much since huh?" Deeks chuckled, "You guys get much?"

"Chad Gardiner found a sleeper within the navy, Bernardo Amora…real name Ricardo Namirea. Looks like there could be a drug trade involvement with the navy drugs" Callen nodded.

"Distribution of the drugs through his contacts in the US" Kensi faced Callen.

"That's our thinking. Namirea got wind of Gardiner's suspicions of him, kidnapped Holly then kidnapped Gardiner to force him to tell him about the drugs"

"It went south for Holly when Gardiner wouldn't say anything. Namirea got mad, forced the drugs into Holly, punched and abused her then threw her into the water"

"Okay so how do we find Namirea?" Kensi asked as she saw her partner stifling a yawn.

"That could probably wait until tomorrow morning", Hetty called out as she walked into the bullpen, "I could see Mr Deeks catching flies with his mouth just then"

"What? No Hetty, really I'm fine" Deeks sat upright in his chair.

"Hetty's right…we should take a break and be fresh in the morning" Callen nodded.

"If you're sure Callen…then we are outta here. Deeks remember you and I have a dessert to demolish tonight" Kensi grinned.

"If I'm not here in the morning guys", Deeks said, as he arched his back and picked up his go bag, "then Kensi has given me food poisoning from this new dessert she's concocted"

**Okay there you go…next chapter soon! Reviews welcome! Much love xxx**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello sorry it's been a bit long between chapters…not really good excuses just busy. Forgive me? Anyway here you are…**

**Disclaimer: No part of NCISLA is mine…for now haha**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 5**

"What _are_ you doing Kensi?" Deeks asked as he watched her going to her kitchen and dragging an assortment of food out of the fridge and her cupboards and plonk it all haphazardly on the counter.

"Hush you. Just go sit down on the sofa and I will bring your masterpiece over soon" Kensi waggled her finger at him.

"Okay fine" he raised his hands, surrendering. "Just to clarify…this dessert is all edible?"

"Deeks" she warned, "go away"

He smiled and walked over to the sofa and slumped into the comfy chair with a sigh. He picked up the remote and started channel surfing trying to find something he liked.

"Hey!" Kensi called out, as she walked in with her hands full of two large bowls of her fresh made invention, "Put it on Top Model"

"Come on Kens, we watch that _every_ time I come over. Surely we can watch something else for a change?" Deeks whined.

Kensi sighed; she knew that she insisted on watching her favourite shows whenever Deeks came over, which was fairly regularly these days. It was only fair that she let her partner have his way every now and then so she nodded in agreement, "Fine channel surf away then"

She curled up with her legs underneath her and reached to her coffee table and grabbed one of the bowls and handed Deeks the other.

"So what is in this?" Deeks squirmed up his face as he eyed the concoction.

"Three types of ice cream, hundred and thousands, Twinkies, M & M's, jam donuts and finally soda" she licked her lips.

"Wow, you've tried this before?"

"Yep. Try it its delicious" Kensi grinned before digging her spoon into the dessert, pulling out a huge spoonful.

"Okay here goes", Deeks screwed up his nose, shut one eye and took a spoonful, "Hey this is actually pretty good. First step designing desserts for your partner, next step International Dessert Chef of the World"

"I guess desserts are the only thing I _can _actually make" Kensi shrugged.

"That's because there is hardly any cooking involved when you're just throwing things together like this"

A swift punch to his arm told Deeks he went a little too far, "Ouch Fern, geez take a compliment when I give you one would you. I was acknowledging you made a really good dessert for me and I was thanking you for it"

"Oh…sorry. Thanks Deeks. I'm glad I have someone to share it with…or experiment on" she giggled.

"Great, so I'm your guinea pig am I?" Deeks shook his head, "I bet you'd be too scared to ask the others to test out your food"

"Well Callen and Sam already know about my cooking abilities and have tasted my offerings and you also have too and Hetty…hell I don't even have a clue what she likes to eat. She probably has eaten pasta with the Pope and had tea with the Queen for all I know"

Deeks laughed, "I can just see Hetty with the Queen. 'No, no dear you _have_ to try this delightful herbal peppermint infused tea from the outback of India. It's divine', he made expressive over-the-top gestures with his hands.

Kensi snorted in laughter, "I have a list here of a hundred different varieties of tea you really should try Your Majesty. I've tried every one of them too"

"This is good. I think I needed this tonight Kens…thank you" Deeks shyly smiled.

"You are welcome. I am good at cheering up people up sometimes" she proudly nodded.

Deeks nodded, "Yes you are. I don't think you realise how much you cheer me up just by me seeing you each day"

Kensi could only just smile and nod. She absolutely knew she felt exactly the same as Deeks when he came in each morning after surfing, smelling of salt and wearing a huge smile and shining blue eyes. When Deeks went to court one day without notice, she was stuck with Granger for the day and hated every minute of it. When her partner returned the following days, he came in waltzing to her desk and getting up very close to her whispering, "Did you miss me Fern? Cause I missed you".

"Kensi?"

"What?"

Deeks grinned, "You have some ice cream on your nose. Here let me get it", he laughed and gently wiped his finger to remove the chocolate ice cream then licked his finger clean.

Kensi baulked but let him touch her. The light gentle touch of his finger sent her butterflies going bananas inside her stomach. She wanted more…more than just a light fingered touch. Instead of his finger removing the offending smudge she wished it was his stubbled cheek and lips, brushing against hers…begging for permission to engage in a real kiss.

"Uh thanks" she stammered, "Do you want a second helping?"

"Oh no, I think one bowl of this is more than enough" he chuckled, "I want to be able to move tomorrow"

"Right, I can still outrun you even with a full stomach" she grinned.

"Uh huh someday I'd like to see if that is actually true", he smiled as he glanced at his watch, "It's getting kinda late, I should probably go home"

"You can stay if you like Deeks…I mean if you want to…you don't have to"

"Sofa or bed?" Deeks asked innocently.

"If you can sleep without burping or farting or any other disgusting noises from your body…I guess I can allow you to sleep in the bed" Kensi said, her arms folded in front of her.

"Says she who sleeps like a starfish, snorts like a piglet and tosses around all night like she has ants crawling all over her" Deeks grinned.

"Perhaps it is the sofa you would prefer?"

"No, no…sorry I didn't mean a word of it…it was all a big lie"

"Uh huh…I'm going to have a shower first" Kensi snorted and disappeared to the bathroom.

"I'll just get my bag outta the car" Deeks yelled as he opened her front door.

Kensi had already turned off the TV and was sitting in bed as Deeks came in the bedroom. She had a blue set of pyjamas on and was idly playing with her phone, "I'll just get changed in the bathroom I won't be long" he said, secretly stealing a stare at his beautiful partner.

Kensi nodded and went back to her phone. She glanced up when Deeks came out, wearing a black t-shirt and grey shorts.

"I'm guessing you have ownership rights over which side of the bed?" he swayed his finger between the right side and left side.

"Correct. My bed I'm on the right side" she smiled, "I'll be good and share"

"Share? Kensi Blye does not share anything" he threw the covers back.

"I shared my recipe with you tonight" she huffed.

"Oh right, you did. Well I'm looking forward to sharing more things with you partner" Deeks smiled warmly.

"You never know your luck in a big city Deeks. Good night" she turned and switched off her bedside light.

"Good night Kensi. Sweet dreams" he shook his head with a smile.

'_If he only knew the dreams I have are the sweetest of all. They are all about him'_ Kensi smiled knowingly as she bit her bottom lip.

**I couldn't resist throwing in a little Densi chapter. Back to the story next chapter though. Reviews are like Kensi's dessert…yummy! (I don't think I would have the courage to actually eat her dessert in saying that hahaha)**


	6. Chapter 6

**I am so sorry for the lack of updates for this story. Work has got really busy…lame excuse I know. Then a bit of brain freeze for the story happened. Anyway…**

**Disclaimer: yep NCISLA is still not mine (or ever will be)**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 6**

"Well how was dessert last night Deeks?" Callen grinned as Deeks and Kensi came in the bullpen.

"It was…" Deeks looked at his partner who was giving him a 'I dare you' death stare, "quite good surprisingly"

"Full of junk food was it?" Sam asked as Deeks sunk into his chair.

Deeks grinned, "This is Kensi we're talking about. How could it not be full of junk food?"

"Well you're still alive Deeks…for now. That could change you know" Kensi huffed.

"What do you think Sam…one day Kensi will actually go through with her threat to kill him?" Callen chuckled.

"If she doesn't, I will" Sam nodded, as he opened his laptop.

"Sorry guys you are stuck with me. Kensi wouldn't be the same without me. Besides, Hetty loves me" Deeks smiled.

"I am fond of you Mr Deeks but love…that's an entirely different thing" Hetty said as she greeted her team in the bullpen, "I believe Mr Beale and Miss Jones are upstairs and may have some news on the case"

"See Hetty's fond of me Kensi. Just like you" Deeks whispered as he ambled to the stairs.

"Keep it up shaggy boy. The next dessert you'll get will be laced with laxatives" Kensi growled.

The black automatic sliding doors opened up to the tech room where Eric and Nell were furiously typing at their computers.

"What've you got Eric?" Callen stood directly in front of the big screen.

"Five reports of suicides in Los Angeles, all young people aged nineteen and all friends. Autopsies haven't been finalised as yet but friends of the victims report they took some pills they believed were ecstasy" Eric displayed the photos of the young people on the screen.

Nell jumped in, "Two of the girls jumped from a bridge, one of the guys jumped in front of a train the other two guys shot themselves. Preliminary findings of tox screens from the victims suggest the pills they took weren't ecstasy at all but some new drug…"

"Could be the suicide drug Gardiner knew about. Any idea how the kids got the pills?" Kensi asked.

"One of the friends of Shona Seary", Nell pointed to the red head on the big screen, "said Paul Matanzas who is another one of the victims"; Nell pointed him out, "got the drugs from a cousin who's a dealer. When photos of known relatives of Ricardo Namirea were shown to Matanzas's cousin he identified the dealer as Tyron Castena who is Namirea's brother in law".

"Great so the drugs are out there now" Deeks sighed, "What's our next step?"

"Did Matanzas' cousin say how the buy went down? Did they meet or was it a drop off?" Callen asked Eric.

"Ah according to Antonio Proma, that's Paul Matanzas's cousin, the deal was a meet up at a nightclub called Fuego. It's a popular club for Latino's here in LA"

"G? What are you thinking?" asked Sam.

"Namirea and now Castena are dealing these drugs around now knowing damn well the effects they have on people. They're probably getting a kick out of it and are eager to do some more damage. Eric is there any surveillance cameras in the nightclub?"

"I'll have a look, looking for the drug buy I take it?"

Callen nodded, "If Namirea or Castena are on camera we can plan our next step"

"You want to set up another buy?" Sam asked, "We can't use Proma. Castena knows him"

"I know" Callen nodded, "we need someone else".

"Anyone in mind?" asked Kensi.

"You, Kensi"

"What…no. No way Callen. It's too dangerous" Deeks shook his head.

"Deeks, listen a minute. Kensi has the Latina look. If either Namirea or Castena are like any other red blooded male, then one look at Kensi is going to send their blood pressure through the roof. They wouldn't be able to resist. That means they are likely to make contact with her"

"We'll all be there with her Deeks" Sam nodded, "and she'll have ear comms at all times".

"It's fine Deeks, really. I've done this type of undercover a million times" said Kensi, "I know you'll be there with me"

Deeks sighed heavily, knowing he was losing this battle; "Okay I'll agree on one condition"

"What's that?" Callen frowned.

"That I at least get the chance to dance with Kensi"

Kensi smiled broadly, "I think I can manage that Deeks"

"I've got footage" Eric interrupted, displaying the video on screen, "Here's Castena doing the deal in the corner and over in the other far corner is Namirea drinking with some girls while watching Castena doing the deal".

"Well it seems you all are going nightclubbing. Come Miss Blye let's find you some suitably sexy attire" Hetty smiled.

**Phew! I'll try to update a little faster for the next chapter. Reviews would be nice! Much love xxx**


	7. Chapter 7

**I am really sorry that I haven't updated this story for a while. Work has been calling me A LOT to come in and….yes work! Hopefully I can update a bit more but since work keeps calling me I can't make too many promises. I still love you guys and I miss writing for you guys more than you think!**

**Disclaimer: uh huh…it's not mine.**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 7**

"Right let's get you gentlemen sorted before I get to work on Miss Blye" Hetty said as she rounded up Deeks, Callen and Sam at the wardrobe department at the Ops Centre.

"I'm sure we are capable of getting dressed for a nightclub op Hetty" Sam slightly glared.

"Mr Hanna, I have seen what you wear during the day. For night time, you need to kick things up a notch" she smiled as she pulled out a black shirt and pants for him.

"I like this outfit Hetty, what do you think?" Callen asked as held up a pale blue shirt and dark jeans.

"Good choice Mr Callen, my tastes rubbing off on you finally?"

"No…the last time you put me in a nightclub outfit, the jeans were so tight I couldn't breathe" Callen grinned.

"You couldn't breathe in them G, because you had pizza that morning and you couldn't fit into them" Sam chuckled.

"What about me Hetty, how do I look?" Deeks did a quick spin around in his navy shirt and jeans.

"Very nice Mr Deeks", Hetty smiled and gave a 'perfect' sign with her fingers, "Now I suggest you get your comms and make sure your plans are organised while I tend to Kensi"

"Do me a favour Hetty?" Deeks asked, with an arch of his eyebrow.

"What's that Mr Deeks" Hetty eyed him cautiously.

"Can you put Kensi in something colourful? She looks so much nicer in colour than in black, which she always wears on a dressed to go out operation"

"I'll see what I can do", she winked, "Now go get ready"

The three boys walked off to meet Eric and Nell in the armoury room to gather their supplies. Twenty minutes later they waltzed back to the bullpen, kit gear in hand.

"Mr Deeks I hope you approve" Hetty called out as she came over to the bullpen, and the clack of Kensi's high heels echoing on the tiled floor behind her.

Deeks turned to see Kensi stop at the entrance dressed in a deep red mini dress with silver sequined high stilettos and silver drop earrings. Her hair was down, slightly wavy and a clutch purse in her hand.

"Oh wow Hetty", Deeks' mouth gaped, "Kensi you look amazing and sexy"

"Thanks Deeks", Kensi smiled broadly, "Let's go get the bad guys again huh?"

"Hang on, where's your gun?" Deeks asked as he looked her up and down, "Bra holster again?"

"Not this time", Kensi grinned and held up her clutch, "Nowhere else to put it"

Deeks nodded as Sam, Callen and Kensi led the way to the exit doors. He turned and mouthed a silent 'thankyou' to Hetty to which she returned with a wide smile and a cheeky wink, before turning and heading to meet the others.

Kensi would be driving Callen's car to the nightclub while the guys would be taking Kensi's SUV as her backup. Before she got in the car, Deeks walked up to her and whispered in her ear…

"Kens, not only do you look amazing and sexy…you also look absolutely beautiful. Remember you promised me a dance"

A rosy blush crept onto Kensi's cheek as she shyly smiled and looked at her partner.

"A promise is a promise Deeks", she nodded as she turned the engine on.

The fifteen minute drive to the Fuego nightclub didn't take long as Sam, Callen and Deeks would be arriving there first to get a lay of the club and check for anomalies that may have been missed beforehand.

They strode inside, doing their customary crowd and exit checks before finally locating their targets in the far corner.

"Kensi, you're good to go. Target is here", Sam coolly stated in his ear piece.

"Copy Sam, I'm coming now" she replied.

"Kensi?" Deeks interrupted.

"Yes Deeks and no I haven't forgotten" she sighed as she reached for the hand rail as she came down the stairs.

"No it's not that…Kensi, please be careful"

"I will Deeks. Callen where do you see the target?"

"Far left corner I see Namirea and now I see Castena coming over to him. Remember Kens to tag them with the bugs"

Kensi strained over the dancing crowd to see the two men engaged in conversation.

"I see them. I'll grab a drink and then start working my magic"

"Magic…huh" Deeks chuckled, "Go get 'em Kensi the magnificent"

Kensi rolled her eyes and pushed her way to the bar, "Can I have a Mojito thanks?"

"Sure" the barman smiled and mixed up Kensi's favourite drink.

"Thanks", she nodded before slowly making her way through the busy dance area to the back corner.

She stopped near the back of the crowd, sipped her drink before casually turning to get show Namirea her best sexy smile and a slow wiggle of her hips in time with the music.

It worked, just like it had worked many times before on an operation like this. Namirea saw Kensi and brushed the current girl off his lap away before standing and walking over to her.

"Hello Senorita, what is your name?" Namirea grinned laviciously.

"My name is Natalia, and your name?"

"Ricardo, would you care to join me?" he gestured to the seated chairs nearby.

"Sure" Kensi smiled sweetly.

Castena came over and frowned as he saw Namirea getting touchy with Kensi.

"Ricardo, we are here to do business. I wish you would stop trying to lay every single Latina in this club every time we come here. If it keeps happening I will go out on my own to do the business"

Namirea stood and glared at Castena, "This is our project together amigo, who was the one who got you into this and you have earned enough to keep you going for many years. I am aware of the situation tonight, relax will you? My source just told me he is arriving in ten minutes"

"Then I don't want this girl knowing our business Ricardo, the less that know the better", he snarled while staring at Kensi.

Kensi stepped up right in front of Castena and glared, "You don't know me. And you won't get to know me either amigo" she angrily stared as she quickly and easily placed a bug on his body.

"Enough! Go and leave until you can come back here and be a gentleman in front of a beautiful woman like Natalia here" Namirea waved him off sternly.

"Sam, did you get that? New person of interest in ten minutes" Callen caught his partner's eye.

"I heard G. Deeks did you copy?"

"Loud and clear Sammy" Deeks grinned.

"You call me Sammy ever again Shaggy it will be the last day on earth for you" Sam growled.

"Ah…I think I'll go keep an eye on the door for the new poi" Deeks stammered.

"Good choice Deeks. Let us know if you see anything" Callen smiled at Sam, who was still glaring at the blonde detective.

Ten minutes later a Latino young man came into the club. He stopped and swept his eyes around the dance floor and the surrounding perimeter until he saw what he was looking for. Confidently he strode around the edges towards the small group at the back. He noticed the brunette laughing with the man and stopped in front of him and waited.

"You are here for something?" Namirea asked.

"My friend said you dealt in a new drug. It gives you a real kick supposedly and other things"

"You have heard about the other things? Who is your friend?" Castena butted in.

"Paul Matanzas"

"Any particular reason you want the drugs?" Namirea studied the young man closely.

"Yeah. There are bullies at my school"

The three male agents looked horrified at the young man, "Jesus, is this guy thinking about doing what I think he's thinking about doing" Deeks gasped.

"I think that would be a confirmed yes" Callen sighed, "We gotta stop this deal going down. Kensi can you distract Namirea, ask him to dance or something?"

"I'll do my best" she thinly smiled, before standing and gently tugging on Namirea's arm, "Please Ricardo, I want to dance. Will you dance with me?"

"Not now Natalia, I have business to attend to. I won't be too long though. Perhaps you should get another drink, I'll pay".

"Aww, but I want to dance now", Kensi started slowly thrusting her hips as she saw Namirea licking his lips.

"Castena! Take over the deal. You know how to do it. I'll be back soon" Namirea took Kensi's hand and led her to the edge of the dance floor, while keeping his eyes on the young man and Castena. Kensi wrapped her arms around Ricardo's neck and brought her hips closer to his.

Castena yelled his disapproval at Ricardo before frowning and turning to the young buyer, "You got the cash?"

The young buyer reached into his jacket and pulled an envelope, "One thousand"

"We'll go to the restrooms, less eyes to worry about" Castena jerked his head to the right.

"Deeks keep eyes on Kensi, Sam and I will go to the restrooms" Callen ordered.

"On it" Deeks nodded.

Although Namirea's eyes were on Kensi's sexy body, he also kept watching the deal and saw Castena head to the restrooms with the young buyer. Surveying the crowd, he noticed two men also heading to the restrooms and grew suspicious.

"Johan!" Namirea called out to his assistant and jerked his head to the restrooms, "Go check"

Johan nodded and made his way to follow.

"Sam, Callen you may have just been spotted following, be careful" Deeks said over the comms.

"Copy Deeks" Sam whispered, "Stay put"

As Callen and Sam muscled their way into the bathroom, "Federal Agents!" Johan came behind and pushed his firearm into Callen's back.

"Drop your gun" Johan yelled, Callen elbowed Johan in the ribs before grabbing his gun and shooting Johan dead.

"Game's up Castena" Sam aimed his gun at the dealer.

"Kid! Get in the stall" Callen ordered to the young buyer who was able to rush to the toilet and slam the door locked.

"You have nothing" Castena shrugged.

"We have everything" Callen retorted as they saw Castena raise his gun in a last attempt to get out of the situation. Simultaneously, the two agents fired their pistols, dropping Castena to the floor.

"Okay kid, come out now", Callen thumped his fist on the door. The click of the lock opened and the young man came out.

"What's your name?" Sam asked.

"Nick Burton"

"You and I will be having a very serious talk later" the large agent said as he handcuffed the young man.

"Kensi!"

"Deeks, what is it?" Callen touched his earwig.

"Namirea's knocked out Kensi and is dragging her away"

**That's all folks! Again thanks for all your support, it means EVERYTHING. Reviews would be great. Much love xxx**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello once again! I hope you all had a wonderful Easter. I know I'm still slowly chewing through all the chocolate I got ha-ha. Apologies for the delay in updating…Work keeps me busy at the moment. **

**Disclaimer: *sigh* NCISLA does not belong to me…if only**

**CHOICES **

**Chapter 8**

"Get down!" Deeks yelled as he weaved in and out of the panicked crowd, keeping his eyes locked on Namirea who was using the knocked out Kensi as his shield for protection.

Sam quickly handcuffed the young drug buyer to the chair just outside the restrooms before joining Callen at the edge of the dance floor.

"Deeks can you get a clean shot?" Callen asked as his eyes focused on the scene.

"Negative, he's using Kensi as a shield, dammit!" Deeks cursed.

"Elijah, help me with the girl" Namirea yelled to his second accomplice as he brought his gun to his eyesight and aimed at Deeks.

"Oh crap" Deeks swore before he flung himself to the floor just before the gunshots rang out.

"There's too many people here G" Sam complained as he saw some young revellers get caught in the shooting crossfire and collapse with gunshots.

"Ericwe need ambulances now. Casualties have been shot in the crossfire. Try to get cameras outside the nightclub, Namirea's got Kensi" Callen ordered.

"_On it G", Eric answered._

"Kensi, we gotta go after her" Deeks argued.

"Eric! Status?" Sam grumbled.

"_One camera outside the nightclub but I've got a shot of a dark van driving hurriedly away going south. No ID on plates though"_

"Try not to lose that van Eric" Callen shouted, as he watched Sam dragging the handcuffed young buyer to incoming police officers and told them to hold him under arrest until he picked him up later for questioning.

The three guys ran hurriedly to their car and scrambled inside, quickly fastening their seatbelts.

"Head south Sam" Callen frowned, "that's the direction they sped off"

"I know G" Sam glared disbelievingly at his partner, "my hearing isn't that bad that I didn't hear Eric" as he swore at a white car he swerved harshly to avoid crashing into.

"It's okay we'll find her. As long as Eric can keep track of the van", Deeks stated hesitantly, "Right?"

"_Ah…about that van" _

"You lost him? Please tell me you haven't lost him Eric" said Callen.

"_Well not exactly lost….just disappeared for a little bit?"_

"Right Eric, disappeared is sooo much different to lost" Deeks said sarcastically.

"_I'm pretty sure I can track it down I just need a bit of time"_

"You better make sure you do Eric because let me tell you, there are three very very angry work mates of Kensi Blye who will have no hesitation of using _you_ as target practice for our next boxing session in the gym if you don't" Sam growled menacingly.

Eric gulped, _"Ah…going as fast as I can guys"_

"_Callen, I got something, Namirea is in partnership in a business in south LA, could be where he's heading", Nell interrupted._

"What sort of business, Nell?" Deeks asked.

"_Pharmacy. It's a good way to know what pharmaceuticals are all about" _

"Send us the details Nell" Callen nodded.

"_Already on the way to your phones. Oh and guys any violence towards Eric you'll have to get through me first" Nell challenged._

Sam grinned, "Is that little pixie Nell who just said that?"

Callen returned the grin, "Maybe ninja Hetty has been giving pixie Nell some tips"

"Oh God, I hope not, one ninja Hetty is enough to handle than adding Nell too" Deeks sighed.

"Don't forget kick ass Kensi, Deeks" Sam glanced in the rear mirror.

"Oh I haven't forgotten her Sam; I just want my partner back"

**~ncisla~ ~ncisla~ ~ncisla~**

The pharmacy was located on the corner of an intersection. The sign on the front window stated it was open 24 hours a day for seven days a week. Callen, Sam and Deeks holstered their guns and opened the door where the jingle of a bell alerted the owner of their presence in the store.

"Welcome to Camacho Pharmacy, I am Salvador Camacho. How can I help you?"

All three agents flashed their badges in Salvador's face as Sam stepped forward to speak, "I am Special Agent Hanna, this is my partner Special Agent Callen and that's Detective Deeks. You can help us by telling us your connection to Ricardo Namirea, now"

"I don't know of Ricardo Namirea" Salvador haltingly stammered.

"Salvador that's a lie, we just found evidence that he is a partner in this pharmacy. So is he a friend or relative of yours?" Callen glared.

"He is silent partner. Honestly I hardly see him"

"_Some disproving evidence of hardly seeing him coming right up guys" Eric said._

Deeks swiped his smartphone and pulled up the images Eric sent, "Take a little look here now, here is a camera image and look isn't that you and Ricardo walking into this store taken only yesterday"

"Listen, dumbass, Ricardo Namirea has one of our agent's captive somewhere and we want her back. So any information you give us will go a long way to us not hiding your sorry ass body that we accidently found with three bullet holes in it" Sam fumed.

"Okay, okay. I don't know exactly where Ricardo has taken your agent", he faltered as he saw Sam, Callen and Deeks draw out their gun and hold them in their hands, "but he has a secret place where has managed to store the drugs"

"You mean the pills that he is dealing around the city" Callen said.

"Yes, he gave me some to sell here at pharmacy too. Here I get for you" Salvador reached behind him to the top shelf and took down a box of the pills.

"Who are you selling these to?" Sam demanded.

"My customers who I know have disease or the young criminals who have damaged or stolen from my store. Or those who just want a way out of life"

"I got one word for you asshole" Deeks unclicked his handcuffs and pulled Salvador's arms behind his back, "Prison"

"Where's the secret place Salvador?" Callen asked.

"Storage containers, Juliana Street. That's all I know, I swear"

"We'll drop this guy at the boatshed first" Callen stated as he helped Deeks push him into the car.

"_I'm working on the co-ordinates that Salvador gave you know guys. I'll let you know" Eric said._

"Quick as you can Eric" Sam nodded.

**So that's it for now…I will try to update a little faster next time. Reviews would be nice. Much Love to you all! xxx Tanya**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi friends! I thought that since I have a day off work (luckily) I'd quickly give you the next chapter while I'm sitting here and there is a thunderstorm going on outside before the power decides it may go out (hopefully not!) **

**Disclaimer: although I wish NCISLA was mine, unfortunately it is not.**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 9**

Kensi's eyes slowly blinked open as she tried to get a feel for her surroundings. She felt cold and claustrophobic as she looked up and saw one single dull light globe hanging from the roof. Her coldness was exacerbated by the lack of her dress covering her body and her black undergarments exposed. A shiver escaped her body as she struggled against the ties that were binding her arms above her and her feet to the floor.

"_Please guys, come get me fast"_ she grimaced as she heard the door creep open ajar.

**SAM, CALLEN & DEEKS**

Sam and Callen headed for the Challenger as Deeks jogged to Kensi's SUV parked outside the boatshed after they had secured Salvador in one of the rooms after his arrest at the pharmacy earlier.

"_The storage unit is unit 9 number 6714 Juliana St. I see a van parked at the back of the block of units. I'll try to find some cameras nearby"_ Eric stated over the comms.

"Thanks Eric" said Callen, "any infrared details and occupants numbers would be great too"

"_Already checking that G"_

"Methinks Eric doesn't want to face us in the boxing ring" Sam chuckled.

"It wouldn't happen anyway Sam", Callen smiled as he pointed to Sam to go right as he checked the numbers on the street.

"How do you figure, G?"

"There wouldn't be just Eric in the ring with us three...Nell and Hetty would be there to back Eric up and stop us"

"Oh…and probably Kensi too" Sam nodded.

"Let's just find Kensi first before we can put our theory to the test" Deeks snapped.

"We're coming up to the address now Deeks. I need you ready and focused so are you good?" Callen glanced at Sam.

"Yeah I'm good…just…Kensi" Deeks breathed a heavy sigh.

"We know. We'll find her Deeks"

**KENSI**

"Ah…so Natalia you are awake" Namirea sneered as his hands touched her bare waist, making Kensi squirm in disgust, "although I think Natalia is not your real name…so what is your real name senorita?"

Kensi kept her eyes locked on Namirea and said nothing. She had to stay as strong as possible until her team could find her and rescue her.

"Not going to tell me? Well that's a shame. There are ways I can make you tell me you realise. Ways that are….well let's just say your beauty isn't the only thing I can take away from you. I will return Natalia…soon" Namirea kissed her breasts and smirked before turning and walking out again.

Kensi exhaled and felt a tear trickle down her cheek. Rarely did she cry in public and hardly in front of her partner. The only time she usually did cry was when she was watching Titanic to which Deeks always gave her a comforting hug and a chocolate bar afterwards to take the pain away.

**SAM, CALLEN & DEEKS**

"Eric, can you give me an update on the area? We're at the storage unit address now" Callen asked.

"_Namirea must have called some reinforcements. I see five guys in total surrounding the unit, infrared shows three inside. Namirea likely to be one, hopefully Kensi's another"_

"Got it Eric. Sam you go left, I'll go right, Deeks you can take the middle"

Deeks nodded and checked his gun, "Let's go get Kick Ass Kensi"

Silently the team moved between cars, boxes and other storage units as the approached the targeted container. Three armed men were surrounding the unit on guard look out.

"Three guys outside. On my count we'll move in" Callen ordered.

"Ready when you are G" Sam nodded as he moved to a good position.

"Deeks?" Callen glanced over.

"All set"

**INSIDE THE CONTAINER**

"Natalia here is a little something for you" Namirea smiled as he held up four little white pills to show her, "you will take these and then we will have some fun just you and me. Elijah, hold her mouth open"

Brutally the goon forced Kensi's mouth open despite her struggling and wriggling to try to push him off. He pushed two at a time to the back of her throat as she gagged and spat to try not to swallow, but it was too late. Her natural swallowing function meant that the pills slid awkwardly down her throat making her cry out with pain.

Namirea laughed and grabbed Kensi around the waist, sticking his head between her breasts, licking with pleasure. His hands moved up to the back of her bra to unhook the latches, she had her plan sorted to get Namirea when….

"Federal Agents! Don't move!" Callen yelled as he took out Elijah.

"Drop your weapon" Sam warned to another guy, who appeared armed around the corner ready to fire at him. The resulting gunshots from Sam's gun soon took away the threat.

Deeks rounded to the closed off wall within the container that had a door. Feeling the lock, he armed and readied himself, hoping to see Kensi inside…and hoping she was okay.

The door was kicked open and he saw Namirea reaching for Kensi's bra.

"Get off her asshole" Deeks raised his gun and aimed right at the offender.

Kensi head-butted Namirea whose head snapped back at the assault and stumbled away holding his head. Deeks held his aim but didn't shoot until he saw Namirea reach for his ankle and pull out a hidden weapon then he fired as Namiera dropped to the ground on his back.

Hurriedly, Deeks ran to Kensi and cut her arms and legs free before wrapping his arms around her, hugging her tight.

"You okay?" he asked softly.

"Better now you're here" she nodded.

"This is my fault. I'm sorry Kens; I should have tried harder to prevent Namirea from taking you"

"Deeks, no it's not your fault. None of this is your fault okay?

Deeks nodded and walked over to the side wall where Namirea had thrown off Kensi's dress, "Here, put this on. As much as I like this view…this is not how I want to see you in your underwear for the first time".

Kensi blushed and quickly pulled on her dress. She stood, seemingly hesitating about something before she threw her head back and hacked up some spit and walked over to Namirea's dead body and spat right in Namirea's face.

"Whoa, Kens. Jack from Titanic would be so proud" Deeks laughed.

"You guys okay? Kens?" Callen asked as he and Sam burst in.

"We're all good" Deeks nodded, "Kensi held her own"

"What can I say I'm…"

"Kick Ass Kensi" the guys finished in unison.

Callen pulled out his phone and dialled, "Eric, call the cleaners, we got dead bodies and Kensi's safe"

"_Why does it always end up being dead bodies everywhere with you guys, don't the bad guys ever just surrender?" Eric sighed._

"Just lucky I guess" Sam chuckled, "Let's get outta here"

The team headed to their respective cars and got inside.

"I'm driving and no complaints" Deeks opened the passenger door for Kensi.

"I wasn't going to drive anyway Deeks" she reached for her seatbelt.

"Good because I'm taking you home"

"Ah..Deeks" Kensi frowned and touched the stabbing pain in her stomach, "you better take me to the hospital before home"

Deeks looked anxiously at his partner wriggling in pain, "Kensi, what's wrong?"

"Oh nothing really. Namirea just forced four of the suicide pills down my throat earlier is all"

"Oh shit. Hang on" Deeks put his foot to the accelerator and grabbed his phone, dialling Callen.

"Deeks? What's up?" Callen asked, as he walked through the boatshed entrance.

"It's Kensi, I'm taking her to the hospital"

"Why?" Callen frowned.

"Because Namirea forced four suicide pills down Kensi's throat", Deeks shouted as he tooted the horn loudly, "Get out of the way!"

"We'll meet you there Deeks", Callen nodded before turning on his heels and walking straight to the car.

"G?"

"Kensi"

"Oh"

**Okay so I'm not entirely happy with the last few lines but eh there it is. Lucky for me the power stayed on haha. Reviews would be great and once again thank you VERY much for all your support for the story. Much love xxx Tanya.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Okay next update for you buddies! Since you asked ever so nicely. **

**Disclaimer: NCISLA doesn't belong to me. As Hetty would say – BUGGER!**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 10**

The screeching tyres left rubber tracks at the entrance of the hospital as Deeks pushed hard on the brakes and leapt out. He ran to the passenger side and opened the door, helping Kensi from her seatbelt. Wrapping one of her arms around his neck he gently hoisted her from the SUV to the ground and helped her walk to the door.

"I need some help!" Deeks yelled to the nurse who came running when she heard the squeal of the car.

"I've got a wheelchair here. Please miss sit down and we'll take you straight in to see the doctor" Nurse Ellie said.

"Ow, Deeks it hurts" Kensi writhed in pain as she clutched her sore stomach.

"It's okay Kens, I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere okay?" he tried to soothe.

"What's going on here?" Doctor Kerr asked as Nurse Ellie and Deeks wheeled Kensi into the triage area.

"Doc, I'm Detective Marty Deeks, LAPD and my partner here, Special Agent Kensi Blye, NCIS, has had some dangerous experimental drugs ingested into her system by a kidnapper. Please you gotta help her" Deeks pleaded.

The doctor prodded Kensi's stomach which produced a series of painful screams emanating from her mouth in retaliation.

"We'll have to get the drugs out of her stomach immediately. Nurse, set up for the procedure quick as you can" Doctor Kerr frowned.

"Right away Doctor" Nurse Ellie nodded and scrambled off to get things ready.

"Doc? What's happening?" Deeks asked anxiously as he held Kensi's hand.

"If Kensi is in this much pain there is a chance the drugs may have torn the lining of her stomach which could be life threatening. We'll operate and take out the drugs but if the lining is torn, the acid from her stomach could seep out into her body, causing damage to vital organs"

"Oh God no, Kensi" Deeks dragged his hand through his hair.

"Cross your fingers Detective. I'll do everything I can for your partner. Just pray she's a fighter"

"She is Doc, she fights all the way"

Deeks stood to the side while the medical staff organised a gurney and started IV lines and removing her clothing to ready for Kensi's operation.

"Okay we're ready. Let's go people!" Doctor Kerr shouted as Kensi was wheeled through the doors and into the hallway, headed for the operating room. Deeks walked side by side with the gurney never releasing his grip on her hand as she still wriggled in pain. As they got to the large hinged doors to the operating rooms, the medical staff stopped.

"I'm sorry sir, you can't come any further" Nurse Ellie shook her head.

Deeks nodded and leant over the rail, "Kens, I'm right here princess. You fight you hear me? Don't you dare give up. I need you to come back to me and be my partner. We need to break Sam and Callen's five year partnership record, so please Kens, okay?." Slowly Deeks leant over and kissed Kensi's forehead and kissed her hand as the doors opened and the medics pushed the gurney away from him.

Sighing, Deeks turned and walked to the waiting area, slumping in the nearest chair, running his shaking hands through his shaggy hair.

"Deeks! Deeks where is she? Is she okay?" Callen called as he and Sam came bursting through the doors to discover Deeks in the waiting area.

"Kensi's in surgery. She needs a stomach pump but because of the amount of pain she's in there's a chance the drugs could have torn her stomach lining which is life threatening" Deeks replied.

"Deeks, Kensi's strong. She has to be to put up with you sometimes. I'll go get some coffees. Take a breath, I'm sure she's going to be fine" Callen put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"Mr Deeks can you give me a report please?" Hetty asked as she strolled into the waiting area with Eric and Nell trailing after her.

"Hetty, I'll give you the report" Sam interrupted, "Deeks is preoccupied with worry right now"

The diminutive leader nodded and listened intently to the explanation Sam began to tell her. Nell and Eric stayed close together nearby worried looks on their faces. Callen returned with the right amount of coffees for everyone. He figured that the whole team would come to the hospital and his gut instincts were correct as saw the team huddled together.

"Horrible coffee anyone?" Callen gave a small grin as he handed out the coffee cups to his friends but he stopped as he stood in front of Hetty, "I have chamomile tea for you Hetty"

"Thank you Mr Callen, although it certainly won't be as good the tea I would brew myself of course"

"Of course" Callen smiled, "Any news?"

Hetty shook her head, "No, all I'm being told is she's still in surgery at this time"

"I'm worried this could send Deeks into a bad place Hetty" Sam said as he came over to join Callen.

"You underestimate him Mr Hanna. Mr Deeks is very much stronger than you believe. He is not just a cop as I know you are thinking"

Sam looked away uncomfortably, knowing what Hetty was saying was in fact true. He had doubts about Deeks' abilities from the get go and Hetty had picked up on it instantly.

"What is it going to take for you to trust him and respect him Mr Hanna? I trust and respect him without hesitation" Hetty frowned.

"Hetty I know he's a good partner for Kensi but…." Sam hedged.

"No Sam, Mr Deeks is an excellent partner for Kensi and she has no hesitation in his abilities to back her up in any situation. It's time for you to go away and think about the way you treat Mr Deeks, because quite frankly I'm sick of it"

"Hetty…"

"Hetty's right Sam. Deeks doesn't deserve some of the crap we give him. He's shown how good he is for Kensi and he's shown how good he is for the team. This team wouldn't be as good as it is without him" Callen nodded.

Sam turned and walked away to the waiting area. He sat down in an empty chair and glanced over to Deeks who was burying his face in his hands. The words of Hetty and Callen kept going over and over in his mind, playing on his conscience. He vowed that if, no when Kensi recovered he would make things right with Deeks. Hetty was right…Deeks had earned it.

The slight squeak from the hinged doors swung open and Doctor Kerr came striding out, removing his gloves as he walked to the waiting area. The team immediately stood and rushed to the medico awaiting news…

"Kensi has made it through the operation. There was a small tear to the lining which we managed to repair but the next twenty four hours will be the test. If her body responds well to the medication we gave her she should slowly make it through. She lost quite a bit of blood so if any of you are a blood type AB we would appreciate a donation"

"Trust Kensi not to have a common blood type" Callen grinned.

"Can I see her?" Deeks asked softly.

"Let us just settle her in her room and you can see her one or two at a time and only for a short period of time" Doctor Kerr nodded, "I'll get Nurse Ellie to come and get you in about ten minutes".

After downing another bad coffee, Deeks and the team stood when Ellie came over to them, "Okay you can see her, bear in mind she is quite ill and has tubes and wires in her"

"You guys go in first…I can wait" Deeks padded Callen's shoulder.

"You sure? She's your partner Deeks"

"I'm sure…I just need to steady myself before I see her"

"Okay, we won't be long" Callen nodded.

Callen, Sam and Hetty ventured in first and stood silently gazing at their colleague. Kensi was intubated and had various machines beeping noisily in the background. Callen reacted first, slowly reaching for her hand and giving it a gently squeeze.

"We're all here Kensi. It's gonna be okay" Callen told her.

"Yeah Kens, everything will be fine" Sam added.

"Kensi, don't worry about a thing, the main thing is for you to get better" Hetty said squeezing her other hand.

"Let's go" Callen cocked his head for them to leave.

Eric and Nell went in next and Eric heard a gasp escape from Nell as she saw her friend on the bed. Nell looked intently at all the machines and started babbling to Eric about which machine worked for what reason.

"Nell, stop. Kensi will be fine. She's tough. Look how many times she's taken the guys down in training in the gym"

"I know you're right Eric, but she's my friend. I hate seeing her like this" Nell cried.

"We all hate seeing her like this but Deeks is going to see her next. Imagine how he's going to feel seeing her" Eric placed his arms around her, "We should let Deeks spend time with her now, come on"

Nell nodded and let Eric gently guide her out of the room and out to the parking area to drive her home.

Deeks stopped and stood at the entrance to Kensi's room in the hallway. Taking a deep breath in breathing out with a sigh, he steadied himself for what he was about to face. Turning around his blue eyes blinked at his partner's body. Walking slowly over to the bed, his eyes wandered over her injuries and the slow rhythmic beat of the machine helping her to breathe. He brushed a stray hair from her eyes with one hand while holding her hand with his other.

"Oh Kensi", he stammered as he felt a tear flow down his cheek, "princess please I can't be without you. You're the only one who cares about me. I love you Kensi"

Deeks buried his face in Kensi's neck and wept openly for the first time in years. He never noticed there was someone watching him from just outside the room.

**There you are. Apologies for the delays in updating. Work is busy at the moment. I will try to update the story on the weekend. Reviews would be awesome! Much love to all – Tanya xxx**


	11. Chapter 11

**Sorry once again for the slow updates. Work, life = crappy excuses. Anyway hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: If NCISLA was mine…I'd be shouting from the rooftops. So no rooftops for me.**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 11**

Nurse Ellie stopped outside Kensi's room and turned to the man standing just outside, watching Deeks with his partner, "You can go inside if you like; I just need to check Kensi's meds so I won't be long"

"No it's okay. I just need to give Deeks some time with Kensi. I'll try to talk with him when he's finished in there" the man shook his head.

"Don't be silly. I'm sure Deeks would appreciate some reassurance from a friend" Ellie smiled.

"No I haven't been a very good friend to him" the man said sadly.

Ellie gave a small nod, "There is always hope that a friendship can be put back together. But you've got to want to do it for the right reasons, not because you've been guilt tripped into making it right", she smiled and turned and walked away into the room.

The man stood outside and watched as Ellie tended to Kensi's treatment as Deeks quietly kept whispering to Kensi, stroking her hair and holding her hand. He could see the care and concern etched on his face for his partner and thought how he would feel the same if it was his partner who was injured, albeit in a totally different way to how Deeks felt about Kensi. He could sense Deeks' feelings were strong for her and as he watched Ellie smile and wave at him to go inside as she walked out the room, his confidence slowly returned and he took a deep breath and strode inside the room.

"Ellie just told me Kensi's doing really well, Deeks" Sam gave a small smile.

"Yeah, her stats are good. Just need her to wake up now" Deeks nodded.

"Deeks I need to say something and you probably don't want to hear right now…"

"What is it?" Deeks looked up.

"I'm sorry. Really really sorry"

"For what Sam?"

"For treating you like absolute crap for all this time. You've proven how good a partner you are for Kensi and this team is a whole lot better since you came into it. I found it hard to trust you….well not so much you but your abilities as a member of our team because you didn't have our training and I was dead wrong"

"You're right I don't have your training Sam. But I'm a good undercover cop. I found that that was one of the only things I was ever good at. My dad used to tell me all the time how useless I was and how I'd never be anything since I was five years old. But I was determined to find something I was good at to prove him wrong…and joining NCIS as an LAPD liaison felt so good because I finally felt as if I had found a home…somewhere I belong and somewhere that my undercover experience could be a an asset to the team"

"Deeks, believe me you are not useless and you have certainly proved your dad wrong. I couldn't go undercover as a homeless man like you can. Or go undercover posing as husband and wife like you and Kensi can do so well"

"I have a great partner" Deeks nodded.

Sam nodded, "You do have a great partner. But you know what? So does she"

"I care about her Sam" Deeks squeezed Kensi's hand gently.

"I know you do. And that's okay" Sam laid a hand on his shoulder.

"You don't get it…I _really_ care about Kensi"

"Have you told her how you feel?"

Deeks shook his head, "She'll just shut me down. She's too scared to take that leap of falling in love again because the last time she gave her heart to someone, he got up and walked away out of her life. I understand how that would be hard to get over"

"Would you walk away from her Deeks?"

"Not if I had my way. I'd never walk away from her. Even if she wanted to run for the hills, I'd run after her with everything I had"

"You love her" Sam smiled.

"Yes", Deeks nodded, "Yes I love her"

"Then fight for her. Don't let her shut you down. My wife didn't give in to me the first time I told her I had feelings for her, she shut me down too. But I persisted I never gave up. I don't want you to give up either"

Deeks sighed, "But there's Callen and Hetty. I don't think either of them would want us working together again if they knew I loved Kensi"

"Don't be so certain Mr Deeks" Hetty smiled as she stood in the doorway, "I always knew you would be a wonderful partner at NCIS for Kensi but I also knew you would be a wonderful partner for Kensi outside of work. You have my blessing to tell her how you feel"

"You have my blessing too Deeks" Callen joined Hetty at the door, "Kensi is stubborn and pig-headed but you _get_ her. None of us has a drawer in their desk filled with lollies and sweets because he knows his partner gets junk food cravings and has a very sweet tooth but _you do_. That says a whole lot"

Sam smiled, "None of us goes to the trouble of going surfing in the morning and then buying a box of donuts and her favourite coffee to bring in to her at work and is then late for work because of it"

"I do that because she gets really fidgety if she doesn't get her sugar fix in the mornings" Deeks grinned, "I learnt the hard way after spending a rough morning with her"

"You see Mr Deeks, you know Kensi probably a lot more than even we know about her and we've known Kensi a long time" Hetty patted his shoulder, "You probably know Kensi better than she knows herself"

Deeks felt a hand squeezing his own and suddenly two chocolate brown eyes were fluttering open, "Deeks?"

"Hey Kens, welcome back. Do you need the nurse?" Deeks smiled.

"No I just need you to stay right beside me" Kensi frowned as she tried moving position slightly.

"I'll get the doc" Sam nodded, striding to the nurses' station.

A few minutes later, Doctor Kerr came in, a smile on his face, "Well Agent Blye it's nice to see you awake. How is the pain?"

"I'm fine" she uttered before glancing at Deeks who was giving her a "tell the truth Kensi" death stare, "Uh...actually the pain is not too bad"

"Very good. Do you feel you can eat a little something? At the moment you are ordered to only have soft mushy food because your stomach will be sore so things such as soups, mashed vegetables…"

"Ice cream?" Kensi pleaded.

Deeks shook his head and rolled his eyes, "Sorry Doc, forgot to mention Kensi has a sweet tooth and is a bit of a junk food addict"

"Oh…well ice cream may be a bit too cold for you but I want you take things slowly. No gorging on hamburgers and fries the minute you leave here" Doctor Kerr laughed.

Kensi huffed in protest, "Fine. When do I get outta here by the way?"

"We'll see how you go with eating and having a walk around first and then if that goes pretty well…I'm willing to consider letting you out in a couple of days" Doctor Kerr nodded, "And no chasing bad guys for at least one month"

"Understood Doctor, thank you for your assistance" Hetty smiled and shook his hand.

"Two days? I'll go mad!" Kensi frowned.

Sam came up to Deeks and whispered in his ear, "Having second thoughts about never leaving her?"

Deeks turned and grinned at Sam, "It's very tempting right now, believe me. Tell me again why I love her?" he whispered back.

**I'm not sure whether to keep going or leave it like that…what do you think? I'd also like to take this moment to thank everyone for the follows, favourites and reviews for this story. Although I don't reply to all the reviews I read every one and ****appreciate**** them all. REVIEWS WOULD BE AWESOME! Much love – Tanya xxx**


	12. Chapter 12

**Another update for you! Thanks to those who asked for me to continue this. It means so much to me and really brought a smile to my face. Mega hugs to you all. Enough rambling….**

**Disclaimer: NCISLA is not mine….if it was? Yeah I would be promoting it a lot better than they do here in Australia.**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 12**

Callen parked his car in the parking lot at the hospital before heading in to collect Kensi. Deeks had asked Callen if he minded collecting her as he wanted to do something before her arrival home. Although Callen was very surprised, he agreed to collect her and so here he was striding to Kensi's room waiting for the surprise look on her face when she saw who had arrived.

Kensi heard footsteps close to her room, "Hey I am _so_ looking forward to getting out of here. I mean hospitals are okay and all but I'd much rather heal in my own…." she turned to see Callen standing in the doorway, "Callen…what are you doing here? Where's Deeks?"

"He asked me to come get you as he had something he had to do. So here I am. Nice surprise face by the way" Callen smirked.

"What exactly did he have to do?" Kensi eyed Callen suspiciously, "There's no surprise welcome home party thing going on is there?"

"Nope no party…honest", Callen made a scout's honour salute, "He wouldn't tell me what he was doing so I know just as much as you"

Sighing, Kensi handed her bag to Callen, "I guess I better go find out huh?"

Callen just nodded and led her to the desk to sign her discharge papers then headed out to the car.

The drive out to her apartment seemed to take forever to Kensi as she idly chatted small talk to Callen in-between staring out the window. In reality the drive took only twenty minutes with the rush of the peak hour traffic eased off dramatically. Callen turned the corner into Kensi's street and as her small apartment came into view she started to get butterflies dancing in her stomach as she saw Deeks' car in her driveway.

Callen pulled in behind Deeks' car and walked around to other side to get her bag off the back seat before opening the passenger door to help Kensi out. Slowly they both walked up to the front door where Kensi stopped and took a deep breath in before turning and looking at Callen.

"Definitely no party right?" Kensi asked warily.

"Definitely not Kens. I don't hear any loud music do you?" Callen replied.

"Huh…yeah no music. Okay in we go" Kensi muttered before turning the door handle.

The distinctive aroma of a fresh pot of spaghetti carbonara wafted around her kitchen followed by the smell of something chocolaty heating up in the oven, making Kensi's stomach instantly growl in response. The sight of her blonde haired partner with flour, cream and chocolate all over his face and t-shirt caused Kensi to giggle in amusement.

"Hey welcome home partner!" Deeks grinned before walking over to hug her.

"You look like a nuclear device of food dropped all over you. I hope my kitchen doesn't look like world war three!" Kensi rolled her eyes.

"Well the kitchen doesn't look any messier than the rest of the apartment so I'd say the kitchen is fine" Deeks smirked, "Oh hey thanks for picking Kensi up Callen" he turned and shook his hand.

"No problem, I should get going though. There's a replay of a game that Sam taped for us that we are going to watch…so I'll see you both later" Callen smiled.

"You sure you don't want to stay for food? There's plenty here" Deeks asked.

"No I'm good. You two enjoy it" Callen gave a wink to Deeks as he opened the door and chuckled to himself as he walked to his car.

"So uh…Deeks how did you get in here?" Kensi asked as she dipped her pinkie in the creamy sauce he was pouring over the pasta.

"Oh I learnt how to pick a lock from the best lock picker at NCIS" he smiled before swatting away her hand.

A huge grin appeared on Kensi's face, "You already knew how to pick locks Deeks. I just taught you how to do it faster"

"That you did partner. Now my princess take a seat at the table as I have prepared my best dish for you" Deeks said as he looped Kensi's arm into his own, leading her to the nicely prepared table he had set up. He pulled out her chair and hurried to the bench to return with two steaming bowls of the creamy pasta, placing them on the placemats, "Oh one more thing" he muttered before dashing to the fridge to bring back two glasses of cola, "Sorry no wine or alcohol until you're better so this will have to do"

"It's perfect", Kensi smiled as she watched Deeks sit down in the chair beside her. She twirled the strands of spaghetti on her fork before opening her mouth wide to accommodate the large forkful she had. Deeks just shook her head and smiled at her eating manners knowing how much Kensi loved her food.

"What?" Kensi mumbled, still chewing.

"Really Kensi you and pigs…same style of eating"

"Shut up" she poked her tongue out before digging her fork in again, "Deeks this is really good. How did you learn to cook so well?"

"My Mom. She was a really good cook and whenever Dad was at the pub or out working she used to drag me into the kitchen saying if anything happened to her she wanted to make sure I had something I could do to look after myself"

"Wow, sounds like she had a prophecy that something would happen to her…because of your Dad?"

"Yeah, he used to beat her so badly then when I used to jump in to try to stop him then I would cop it. Still better me than her. Mom always tried her best but it was never enough for him"

"Your Mom's still alive isn't she?" Kensi asked.

"Yeah, I see her maybe once a week. But that story is for another day if you don't mind Kens"

"Oh…sure. Hey thanks for this Deeks. What would I do without you?"

"Starve….actually no you would be sitting here eating junk instead of real food"

"You know me too well" Kensi licked some cream from her lips.

"Well I need you to have your strength back. I miss having my partner beside me"

"Aww…really?"

"Of course. Besides you still owe me a dance Kensi Blye. A dance you are _not_ getting out of"

"I was hoping you'd forgotten"

Deeks shook his head, "Nope, mind like an elephant. I always remember the important stuff"

"Uh huh. See I was thinking your mind was more like a snail. Moves at that kind of pace"

"Ooooh ouch! You better say sorry or there is no dessert for you. And it's definitely not one of _your_ designer creations"

"Dessert, really? Okay I'm sorry" Kensi batted her eyelids.

"Oh _that's_ sincere" Deeks mocked, "I just made a nice dinner for you and _that's_ the thanks I get?"

Kensi shuffled her chair closer to Deeks so her face was inches from his, he could almost…. "Pleeeeasssse?"

Deeks grinned, "Okay wait here. I'll go get it"

When Deeks returned with two platefuls of a steaming hot chocolate pudding, Kensi's face broke into a huge grin as she grabbed up her spoon eager to dig in.

"I hope you like it" Deeks smiled as he sat down with his own plate.

She carefully pierced the pudding before a lava of chocolate sauce came oozing out of the middle, to which a squeal of delight escaped from her lips.

"OH MY GOD! Deeks this is _so good_"

"Better than your creation?" Deeks chuckled.

"Oh _way _much better" Kensi nodded enthusiastically, "I can't believe you did all this"

"Kens?"

"Mhhhmmm?"

"Anytime"

As the last few crumbs of the dessert was quickly finished Deeks cleared the table and started running the water to wash up while Kensi disappeared into her bedroom.

"Deeks….leave it. I'll do it in the morning"

"No I made the mess I'll clean it up" he shook his head.

"Deeks look at me"

He turned around, "I think you need to get out of that dirty t-shirt. Not to mention your face"

Looking down at the copious amount of chocolate, flour and cream all over him, Deeks burst out laughing, "All for a good cause…wait do you want to take my shirt off?"

"Well you're not wearing that in my bed"

"Oh…so the kind of dancing you want to do is not the upright, standing close together, hand in hand kind?"

"No! I'm simply offering for you to stay to keep me warm as it's going to be cold tonight. As a thank you for your amazing meal you cooked"

"Right. So if I'm keeping _you_ warm what's going to keep me warm?"

"Well if you're not interested…" Kensi trailed off, walking to the bedroom.

"I didn't say _that_. Kensi, wait for me!"

As they pulled the covers up and Kensi turned her electric blanket on, she turned to face Deeks, "Hey Deeks?"

"Yeah Kens?"

"I _will_ dance with you. I did promise you. Are you free tomorrow night?"

"As I said before Kens, anytime you need me I'll be there" Deeks grinned broadly.

**Okay so the next chapter is their night out, which leads to something happening for the beginning of a brand new story coming your way soon. REVIEWS WOULD BE GREAT. Much love to you all xxx Tanya**


	13. Chapter 13

**HUGE THANKS to all who has read this story. I love hearing and seeing how you like it (or am I just imagining it?) Anyway this chapter (and it's pretty long…sorry) will be the catalyst for moving onto the next new story…sneaky huh? **

**Disclaimer: in case you hadn't noticed…NCISLA is not mine. Shame really.**

**CHOICES**

**CHAPTER 13**

"So who gets to choose where we go and what we do for our little dancing tonight Kensi?" Deeks asked as they headed out to the car to finish with the last few people involved in the suicide case at the boatshed.

"I don't know…I agreed to go on this dancing thing with you…"

"No you didn't agree Kens, you promised and dancing thing? Really?"

"Okay yes I promised, so I'm thinking that _I_ get to pick and choose" Kensi smirked as she started the car.

"It was my desire to go dancing with you so maybe _I_ should be the one to choose" Deeks grinned back.

"Well I have high expectations so are you sure you're ready, willing and able to impress me?"

"Hey how could you not be impressed, with the all awesomeness of Marty Deeks?"

"I'll reserve judgement on that until I've actually seen the all awesomeness in all its glory thanks" Kensi snickered.

"Oh ye of little faith Kensi Blye. Okay I'm going to show you exactly what the Marty Deeks awesomeness is all about. I promise you are going to think so much differently about your partner"

"You have no idea what I think of you partner" Kensi wiggled her eyebrow.

"I have a hunch"

"Pfft, yeah right" Kensi snorted as she parked the car.

"I'm a detective…I detect remember" Deeks smiled.

"You couldn't detect where you left your keys this morning Einstein"

Deeks stopped and pulled Kensi's arm, twirling her around to face him, "How about this? I pick the restaurant you pick the dancing"

"Fine"

"Fine"

"So can we go finish this case up now?" Kensi huffed.

"Lead the way Princess" Deeks waved his arm.

They entered the boatshed where Sam and Callen were already in the interview room with the pharmacist who was being questioned over his dealings with the drug dealers. As the two junior agents sat outside watching the monitors, they stole silent glances at each other, neither daring to speak a word. A few minutes later, Callen and Sam stood, pulling the pharmacist to his feet as Sam crudely hooked his arms behind his back and handcuffing him. He was to be handed over to police for later sentencing and Sam and Callen looked pleased as they walked back outside to where Kensi and Deeks were waiting.

"Another case bites the dust" Deeks smiled.

"Yep, Holly's father has been found, killed by Namirea as it turned out and this guy will be going to prison for a very long time" Callen nodded.

"What about the suicide drugs?" Kensi asked.

"Being taken care of as we speak. Hetty's organising teams to go around making sure the navy takes a lot more care with such a dangerous drug that it never leaves the navy" Sam replied.

"And we're liaising with LAPD to try to minimise the danger that some may get out on the street" Callen added.

"So the navy is still prepared to use it on our hostiles then?" asked Kensi.

"Not our call Kens, that's up to those in far more illustrious positions than us" Callen shrugged.

"Huh, so we're putting our trust in the government and navy that this is a good decision" Kensi frowned.

"Ironic huh?" Deeks smirked, "We vote them in and most of the time we never get told what they are doing in secret but that it is all for "the good of the country" he gestured air quotes.

"Yep democracy can be funny sometimes" Sam smiled, "Let's get out of here"

All four team members drove back to the Ops to inform Hetty and start on paperwork before the day finished. As Sam and Callen headed to Hetty's desk, Kensi and Deeks went to their desks and sat down, Deeks letting out a dramatic sigh in the process.

"Damn paperwork, this is the worst part of a case"

"The quicker we do it the quicker the night begins" Kensi smiled, "and I've thought of the perfect place for dancing"

"Oh really? Well it so happens that _I_ have thought of the perfect place for dinner so I believe this night is gonna be all sorts of awesomeness" Deeks grinned, as he opened his drawer and pulled out a caramel toffee and tossed it onto Kensi's desk.

"Ooooh thanks Deeks" Kensi grinned, quickly opening the lolly.

"That's all you're allowed to have. Can't have you gorging on rubbish before having a beautiful dinner" Deeks warned.

"Well, all in all a job well done on solving the case Miss Blye, Mr Deeks, Mr Callen and Mr Hanna. Since Kensi and Deeks have made a good head start on their reports they have my permission to leave early tonight", Hetty smiled, walking into the bullpen.

"Why them Hetty? We're getting to ours now" Sam whined.

"So I see Mr Hanna, but I haven't had to push Kensi and Deeks to finish their reports on time as much as before but I have had to threaten both you and Mr Callen several times as I recall"

"Well I guess we'll see you boys tomorrow then", Deeks grinned, "You ready Kensi?"

"All set" Kensi picked up her bag, "See ya guys"

"Oh Mr Deeks a word first please" Hetty called, "and Miss Blye I would like to see you after Mr Deeks".

Deeks followed Hetty to her office and sat opposite her as she stirred her tea, "I have something for you" she said as she opened her top drawer and pulled out an envelope.

"What is it Hetty?" Deeks grasped the paper from her hand.

"Why don't you open it and find out?"

He opened the envelope to find a letter confirming a reservation for two at LA's finest seafood restaurant for 7.30 that evening. He gasped and looked up at the smiling Hetty, "How did you know we were going out….never mind"

"Enjoy Mr Deeks. As I said at the hospital, you have my blessings"

Deeks nodded, "I hope it works Hetty".

"Unfortunately whether it works is something out of my control. That is up to the both of you. Now would you send in Kensi?"

Deeks nodded and stood before turning and heading towards his partner, "Kens, you're up now"

"Is it bad?" Kensi eyed Hetty warily.

"Fake a seizure if you need to" Deeks smirked.

A well-aimed punch to his shoulder soon wiped his dopey grin off his face as he headed to the door. He waited by his car for Kensi to come out, which she did a few minutes later.

"All good?" Deeks casually asked.

"All good" Kensi nodded, "You picking me up or am I picking you up?"

"I'll go home feed Monty, shower and change first. How 'bout I pick you up…say 6.30?"

"I'll be ready. See you then Deeks" Kensi opened her car door.

"See you then" Deeks replied as he turned on the ignition.

Deeks raced home and flew in the door as Monty came bounding up to him wagging his tail, "Sorry bud, I can't stop tonight. I got a hot date", he patted the scruffy mutt behind his ear and headed for the kitchen to feed his loyal companion. After filling his bowls and making sure Monty had water, Deeks headed for the bathroom to shower. Usually he liked to spend a long time under the steaming hot water but he knew tonight he had to be right on time to collect Kensi. He rifled through his wardrobe and finally settled on a light purple shirt, dark jacket and pants. Checking the time on his watch he grabbed his keys, gun and phone and giving Monty one final pat goodbye, he walked down to his car with a grin on his face, hoping that tonight would be a special one.

Kensi meanwhile, was literally running from room to room in her little house. First she jumped in the shower before standing in front of her closet and started pulling clothes out, looking them over and either tossing the ones she thought might be good on her bed and the ones she didn't think were good enough on the floor. By the end of her disagreement with her clothes, her closet was empty and she had small heap on her bed to choose from. Finally deciding on an emerald green jersey dress with high heels and her hair down and wavy, she sprayed on her favourite perfume and by the time she heard Deeks softly rap at her door she was ready.

"Hey" Kensi smiled as she saw her partner standing before her.

"Hey yourself. Wow Kensi you look beautiful" he grinned.

"You scrub up pretty nice too Deeks. So shall we get this show on the road?"

"Let's do it. First stop, dinner" Deeks offered his arm for Kensi to loop her own arm through.

Kensi nodded and grabbed her handbag off the couch and locked the door behind her, before taking Deeks' offer of his arm.

"You drive to the restaurant and I'll drive to the dancing, Deeks" said Kensi as she got in the passenger seat.

"What you drive my car in high heels? Are you crazy?" Deeks asked surprised.

"No I'm not crazy. Besides, I can run in high heels so driving in them is no big deal"

"You may be able to run in heels, but you forget I _know_ how you drive. It's not pretty"

"I am a _great_ driver Deeks, if I do say so myself", Kensi smirked, "So what restaurant are we going to anyway?"

"Not telling, it's a surprise" Deeks smiled, "and we are almost there, it's just the next corner"

Kensi's eyes widened in surprise as she read the name 'Pesce Lina' on the front door of the small restaurant, "We are eating at the best seafood restaurant in LA? Really?"

"Yep. Surprise!" Deeks exclaimed, "We have reservations for two"

Deeks parked the car and together they walked side by side to the door and Deeks stood aside to let Kensi go in first. The head waiter, Bernie greeted them warmly, "Welcome to Pesce Lina, we are pleased to have you here tonight. How may I help you?"

"Reservations for two under the name of Deeks" Deeks answered.

"Ah yes Mister Deeks, right this way. My name is Bernie and I'll be your waiter for this evening. We have one of our best seats for you and your beautiful wife" Bernie smiled.

"Thank you Bernie" Deeks smiled, "After you princess"

They headed to a small quiet table near the back of the restaurant and as they sat down and were handed their menus, they both took the opportunity to glance around the room in awe at their surroundings.

"Really Deeks this is too much. This will blow your pay cheque for the next month! How did you manage this?"

"I guess I should own up at this point", Deeks sighed, "Actually it was Hetty that made the reservations. I'm not saying I wouldn't have brought you here myself, it's just Hetty already planned our dinner"

"Hetty", Kensi started laughing.

"What? What's funny Kens?" Deeks frowned.

"Hetty gave me two admission tickets to the best nightclub in LA for tonight after dinner"

"Good old Hetty" Deeks grinned, as he saw Bernie walking to them with arms full of their meals, "Our meal has arrived"

"Ooooh this looks really good" Kensi cooed.

"Bon Appetite partner" Deeks offered his glass of wine to clink.

The meal was delicious and the easy conversation relaxed them both as the hours passed by. After a small dessert, Deeks asked Bernie for the bill, "No need Mister Deeks, your meals have all been paid for" Bernie shook his head.

Kensi and Deeks both looked at each other and grinned, "Hetty".

"I hope you both enjoyed your meal with us tonight?" Bernie asked.

"Absolutely. Thank you for a wonderful meal" Deeks smiled and shook his hand.

As he led Kensi out the door, she gently grabbed his arm and sighing she placed he head on his shoulder as they walked to the car, "That was amazing. Thanks Deeks"

"Thank Hetty. She gave us the reservations" Deeks shrugged.

"Yes but I didn't spend this evening with just anyone, I spent it with my partner" said Kensi.

"The night's not over yet though" Deeks suddenly remembered, "We still have dancing"

"Exactly. Now hand over your keys" Kensi grinned.

Kensi did take off her heels as she drove Deeks' car to the nightclub twenty minutes away from the restaurant. She secured a parking spot close by and they both walked up the steps to the entrance where the security guard was standing.

"Two admission tickets" Kensi showed the guard as he nodded and opened the door. Instantly they were met with the loud rhythmic beats of the music emanating from the DJ in the corner.

"So Miss Blye can I offer you a dance?" Deeks bowed in front of her.

"You can Mister Deeks. I would be honoured" Kensi grinned as she yanked his arm to the wooden crowded dance floor.

The fast paced music had them dancing around crazily, both showing their goofy side as they jumped and bopped in time. After a solid fifteen minutes of fast pace, the DJ slowed things down with a ballad giving Kensi and Deeks a chance to catch their breath.

"Now this is a better pace. Phew" Deeks puffed.

"The slower the better" Kensi nodded, as she wrapped her arms around his neck and moved her hips in close to his. The intoxicating aroma of her perfume invaded his nose, titillating his senses.

"Kensi?" he murmured.

"Uh huh?" Kensi mumbled.

"I…I love dancing with you" Deeks sighed, growling at himself for not telling the truth.

"Deeks do you feel like a coffee at my place?" Kensi broke away from him.

"Now?" Deeks looked surprised.

"Now" Kensi nodded.

"You know me I'm always up for a coffee" he smiled and took her hand, leading her to the exit.

They spent the drive back to Kensi's house in silence, stealing occasional glances at each other as Deeks drove. He parked in the driveway and Kensi unlocked her door, with Deeks following in behind. She headed straight for the kitchen, switching on her kettle, as Deeks turned on her TV.

"Oh when you said coffee you actually _meant_ coffee" Deeks came to the kitchen.

"Did you think coffee meant…" Kensi swivelled around to face him.

"Well…yes I was hoping" he admitted which immediately earned him a punch, "Ouch! No that came out wrong…I meant to say…"

"Yes?" Kensi huffed.

"I…I'm in love with you Kensi. And I know you don't want to hear that but I can't keep denying it or telling myself that I'm wrong to think that way about you. I know without any doubt how I feel…I guess now I want to know how you feel about me?"

Kensi looked deeply in his blue eyes and took a step towards him. She didn't hesitate and reached up to bring his head down so she could reach up to kiss him deeply.

"I am in love with you too Deeks. I guess I'm just scared of love"

"I'm not Jack"

"I know"

"I want to be with you Kens. You jump, I jump"

"I want to be with you too Deeks. Come on let's have our coffee on the sofa and we'll go from there" Kensi smiled.

Flopping on the sofa, they sipped their coffee, Kensi grabbing the remote and channel surfed around on the TV. She grinned as her favourite show; Top Model came on as she relaxed her body against Deeks'.

"Now this is heaven" she sighed contentedly.

"I couldn't agree more" Deeks chuckled as he leant down to kiss her.

"_We apologise for this interruption", the newsreader said on the TV, "We have breaking news. A major fire has broken out at the Crescent St Health Facility. We understand several patients have been killed as a result of the fire. Many more are injured. Several fire crews are on the scene"._

Instantly Deeks sat upright staring intently at the pictures showing on the screen. His face was turning paler by the second as he gasped.

"Deeks? What is it?"

"I gotta go Kens" he shakily answered.

"Deeks, tell me!" Kensi cried.

Deeks turned and walked out the door, leaving Kensi confused.

**So this is the end of Choices. Which leads to a brand new story for Deeks and Kensi following on from this story…Coming your way soon! **

**REVIEWS WOULD BE AWESOME! Much love and thanks for your support for Choices, hopefully you will like the next one just as much (if not more!) – Tanya xxx**


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